The major factors that are driving the market are the increasing occurrence of vehicle theft and a robust spike in the number of road accidents, particularly due to unsafe driving habits, such as over-speeding, hard cornering, and unmanageably dense traffic, among others. Apart from the aforementioned drivers, vehicle connectivity has also gained traction, due to the preference of in-car Wi-Fi hotspots and data services, for providing infotainment facilities.

The increasing incidence of vehicle theft is directing customers’ attention to a surveillance system that can monitor their vehicle and send timely updates about its geographic location. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 773,139 units of motor vehicles were stolen in 2017, compared to 767,290 units in 2016. Additionally, a surge in road accidents due to unsafe driving habits are also prompting customers to adopt connectivity in their cars, to remain updated about on-board diagnostics, the performance of electronic control systems, etc.

According to NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration), about 94% of the accidents occurring on the US roadways can be attributed to human choice or error; errors including drunken driving, speeding, and others.

Every year, approximately 1.3 million people die in road traffic accidents; a further 20-50 million are injured. Latest technologies such as new safety devices, connected and autonomous vehicles, and intelligent transportation systems with their associated infrastructure and systems are likely to improve and reduce road accidents. Vehicle manufacturers, governments, and international safety organizations are all working to achieve this goal and are heavily reliant on international safety standards. According to the US Department of Transport, V2V communication could prevent up to 80% of accidents that don’t involve drink driving or mechanical failure.

Europe and North America - Dominating the Market

The European and North American region are expected to dominate the connected car device market followed by Asia-Pacific.

The United States is considered to be a pioneer in terms of vehicle connectivity. The United States Transportation Department has taken a new initiative to accelerate the deployment of Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) communications technology. This new proposal is expected to be mandatory by 2023. Additionally, the demand for smart solutions in the fields of mobility, vehicle management, safety, and driver assistance has been continually increasing in the country over the last few years., and integration of these cutting-edge technologies has been one of the crucial parameters for customers in purchasing new vehicles.

In the EU, the European parliament implemented the regulation mandating E-call systems in vehicles that ensures the passenger's safety and it has been estimated that it will save more than 2,500 lives on the road. These initiatives and favorable regulations increase the number of connected vehicles on roads, which further create a huge demand for connected vehicle services and connected vehicle devices.

In the Asia-Pacific region, China leads the market for connected car devices, followed by Japan. The demand for embedded connectivity in vehicles from the consumers and the shift towards connected vehicles has expanded the market for connected car devices in the country.

Competitive Landscape

Some of the key players of the connected car device market are Continental AG, Robert Bosch GmbH, Denso Corporation, Autoliv, Autotalks and Valeo S.A. among others. The companies are making partnerships for developing more advanced technology and for being ahead in the competition. For instance; Bosch and Mojio unveiled a jointly developed, IoT integrated emergency response solution. The new offering adds crash detection and emergency call (eCall) response to an existing connected car solution from Mojio.

In January 2019, Valeo and Autotalks showcased V2X capabilities integrated with Telematics at CES 2019 event. The V2X technology will increase safety by extending the perception of the car for better anticipation of the potential road dangers. It is also key technologies in the move towards cooperative driving and to globally optimize Smart City traffic flow and services.